Thursday, September 2, 2010

The Rockies have been on the receiving end of some powerful overhand punches over the years, but I'm not sure any have been placed as squarely on the chin as the one dealt out by the Philadelphia Phillies this evening.

More specifically... Chase Utley... (no highlight)

The Rockies are staggered, woozy, and one punch away from eating some canvas.

This game was the entire Rockies season presented to you in one four hour roller coaster ride of emotions. It was crazy, thrilling, frustrating, nerve-racking, back to thrilling, disappointing, still crazy, with a heart-breaking result.

The punch to the chin. The realization that our team falls one step short of where they could be, where they should be, and above all, where they need to be.

Our 2010 Rockies have all the talent in the world. They have a resilience few other teams can match when they play games at Coors Field. I love that. I love feeling like anything is possible, like no deficit is too much, like the Rockies control their own destiny and everyone else will know when it's time to get out of their way.

But that feeling disappears the moment this team hops on a plane. If they could pay with even 1/10th of the resilience on the road that they have at home, the Rockies wouldn't be absorbing any punches right now. They would be blocking and taking the fight right at everyone else.

That is what makes this season frustrating. The pieces, the talent, the intangibles, the attributes of a winner are all there. It's just the inability to put them all together for nine innings, day in and day out, especially away from Denver.

I'm proud of the team for continuing to battle through everything tonight. I'm disappointed the bullpen couldn't hold a lead for Jhoulys Chacin, who again pitched his backside off and gave the Rockies a chance to win. And I'll still be watching them tomorrow in San Diego.

My optimism may be overtaken by my honesty and the reality of the situation, but I don't give up. I still love tuning in. I will continue to do so until someone tells I'm staring at a blank screen.